Stress-balancing splice bar



July 2] 1925.

vB. G. BRAINE STRESS BALANCING SPLICE BR Filed Jan. 30. 1924 2 Sheets-Sme?J J mt [NQQQ l@ w MSI Lmlvw N d C i 51u www@ Bancrofi Braine,

MTA/55555:* fr. p6

July 21, 1925. 1,546,883

, B. G. BRAINE STRESS BALANCING SPLICE BAR Filed Jan. 30 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 lq @D ,Bauamt/f5' GBMIUS,

Patented July y21, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT oFFicE.

IBANCROFT G. BRAINE, F NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO THE RAIL JOINT COM- PANY, OF NEW YORK., N. Y., A CORPORATION' OF NEW YORK.

STRESSZBALANCING SPLICE BR.

Application led January 30, 1924. Serial No. 689,526.

To all lwhom t may concern Be it known that I, BANCRoFT G. BRAINE, citizen of the United States, residing at New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvementl in Stress- Balancing Splice Bars, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to rail joint construction and more particularly to a novel distribution of metal in a splice bar for rail joints which effects economy in the use of metal while augmenting the efficiency of the bar.

The ordinary type of splice bars are designed without reference to an economical use of metal and also without properly bal-l ancing the same above and below the horizontal neutral axis to provide a maximum factor of safety in the use of the bar. The present invention however has in view a distribution of meta-l in a splice bar which provides a bar in which economy of metal distribution is carefully conserved and in which there is an effective balancing of stresses at equal distances above and below the horizontal neutral axis. Accordingly, an important object of the invention is to so proportion and dispose the metal in the upper and lower portions of the bar that each element of the eective section below the center line of first moment, or neutral axis, will be substantially equal to the. corresponding element at an equal distance above the said center line of first moment or neutral axis, thereby not only obtaining the most economical distribution of metal, especially when considering joint bars with high fishing, but at the same time most effectively taking care of the strain produced by the applied load as `well 4as properly taking care of the internal stresses which are the result of the strain.

Furthermore, the invention has in view an improved foot construction for the bar which lends itself to carrying out the objects above specified while at the saine time having a maximum sustaining value for strains which are transferred to the outer edge of the flange of the bar.

With these and other objects in view which will be apparent to those skilled in e the art the invention consists in the novel construction and combination of features hereinafter illustrated, described and claimed.

Bassum While susceptible of a structural modifica- .f tion. without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the in vention certain practical embodiments there-v of are shown in the accompanying drawings,-

Figure 1 is an end View of a patented type of splice bar in connection with which the invention has special utility; the view also showing the bar applied to the fishing space of a rail.

Figure 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 showing the improved foot construction .added tion.

Like references designate 'corresponding parts in the several figures of the drawings.

As the invention possesses special utility in its application to splice bars of the well known 100% type, a typical'bar of that type, for illustrative purposes, is shown in Figure 1 of the drawings, said bar representing the ideal distribution of metal according to the invention of patent of Thomson and Thomson No. 937,118', granted October 19, 1909. A distinctive feature of this type of splice bar is to correctly place an increased quantity of metal in a widened head of the bar according to the plan of metal distribution described in the said pat'- eiit, thereby contributing in a practical way to an eflicient balancing of the metal in the head, in the web, and inthe foot flange portions of the bar. In other words, providing a better ratio, in a rigid bar, between f the section modulus of the'top of the bar and of the bottoni of the bar. According to the plan of distribution involved in the said splice bar shown in Figure 1 of the drawings the feature iS involved of carryand at the inner side of the web of the barv .down into the plane of the bolt holes, thus increasing the efficiency and stren h of the head of the bar within a plane elow the tops of the bolts. In connection with this inside distribution of metal an outer vertical bolting face is retained so as to provide a web member which tapers downwardly in thickness from an enlarged head 1 to a relatively thin web portion adjacent the neutral axis of the bar. Thus, an increased amount of metal is added to the inside of the head and web of the bar at a, place formerly reserved for the punching of the bolt holes and the bracket 0f reinforcing metal thus added to the splice bar of Figure 1 of the drawings is indicated by the reference numerals 2 and 3. The reference numeral 2 indicates a downwardly and outwardly inclined inner face which intersects an upright inner face 3 between horizontal planes at the center and at the bottom of the bolt holes as shown in Figure 1 and other figures of the drawings of Patent N o. 937,118 and pointed out in the specification of that patent. This particular. inside conv figuration is shown in both Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings and there are shown on Figure 2 of the drawings the centers of the two different radii on which the faces 2 and 3 are struck and which bring their intersection between` the center and bottom of the bolt \holes.

, The distribution of metal in the patented splice bar referred to is detailed because it may advantageously be combined with the novel distribution of metal shown in the foot flange portion F of the splice bar illustrated in Fig. 2 of the drawings. Referring more particularly to this distribution of metal in the foot flange F of the splice bar it will be seen that this foot iange is formed with a relatively thin neck portion 4 and a n enlarged edge'portion 5, which edge portion is of materially greater depth than the relatively thin neck portion 4. The distribution of metal adopted for the enlarged edge portion 5 of the` foot flange F of the splice bar manifests itself in a shape which may be said to have substantially the form of an inverted frustrum of a pyramid so that the enlarged edge portion 5 presents at its under side a truncated, or substantially truncated, apex 6, and inclining side faces 7 and 8; The side face 7 slants upwardly and inwardly to the underside of the thinned neck portion 4 and the inclined face 8 slants upward and outwardly to the outer edge of the foot iiange.

The foot flange construction described when associated with an uDDer section havmg aneiective' distribution of metal such as shown in all four figures of the drawings provides an unsymmetrical or irregular section which may be absolutely balanced element .for element, therefore provldlng for a balancing of stresses at equal distances ,above and lbelowthe horizontal neutral axis,

and in increments. In order to illustrate how this may effectively be done in a practical form of bar there is shown in Figure 3 of the drawings the improved splice bar construction and on which is shown, by corresponding numerals, the dividing of the bar intov elementsA of correspondlng area which are at equal distances above and below the horizontal neutral axis. Furthermore, the novel distribution of metal makes it possible to obtain a strong bar for the area and to absolutely balance the bar as t0 area, as to strains, and as to stresses; the middle line of the section, the center line of first moment (neutral axis), and the center line of second moment all substantially coinciding. In that connection it should bc mentioned that the center line of first moment is the neutral axis and has to do with the strain produced by applied load and the center line of second moment has to do -with the internal stresses, the result of the strain. And, when a section can be designed so that its lines are coincident the center line of the equal areas asshown in Figure 3 will also be coincident.

In Figure 4 of the drawings is 'shown an embodiment of the invention lin connection with a web subnormally thinned at intervals as indicated by the dotted line 9 according to the patent .of Armstrong and Greif No. 1,480,487 dated January 8, 1924 and having a stepped formation l0 at its upper outer portion according to the invention of the reissue patent of the present applicant No. Re. 15,668 dated August 7, 1923.

From the foregoing it is thought that the construction and advantages of the herein described improvement in metal distribution for splice bars will be apparent without further description, audit also will be understood that changes in the form, proportion and minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the invention or sacrificing anv of the advantages thereof.

,I claim 1. An unsymmetrical splice bar section having zones of metal of equal area at equal said axis providing for a balancing of the stresses.

4. An unsymmetrical barsection having arcas of metal balanced which are at equal distances respectively above and below the.

horizontal neutral axis.

5. A splice bar of different section respectively above and below the horizontal neu tral axis, the said sections being of equal area and modulus.

6. A non-symmetrical splice bar `having zones of metal of equal area at equal distances respectively above and below a medial line substantially bisecting the bar.

7. An unsymmetrical Vsplice bar having substantially equal areas of metal balanced with reference to a medial line substantially bisecting the bar.

8. A splice bar of diilerent conformation respectively above and below a line substan- 20 tially bisecting the bar, said bar being of recessed formation, and having zones of metal of substantially equal areas at equal iistances respectively above and below said lne.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aiix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

BANCROFT G. BRAINE.

Witnesses:

E. K. KERSHNER, C. A. DIsBRoW. 

